As many as 10 people have been killed and two suspects are in custody after a school shooting in Texas.
Shots rang out at Santa Fe High School on Friday morning, in what would become the 22nd school shooting in the US this year. Students recalled hearing a fire alarm and thinking it was a drill – until they heard the sound of gunshots.
Follow latest updates after shooting attack at Santa Fe high school
"It is with great sadness that I stand here to share with you that we experienced an unthinkable tragedy at our high school this morning," Santa Fe Independent School district Superintendent Leigh Wal said in a statement.
She added: "We are grieving the loss of members of our SFISD family."
The suspected shooter and a possible accomplice were said to be students at the high school, located some 40 miles of Houston.
The school district said possible explosive devices had been located at the school and off campus. Law enforcement was attempting to render them safe.
At least 12 people – including one police officer – were hospitalised in the wake of the shooting. The police officer was injured attempting to engage the shooter, according to Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez. The extent of his injuries was unknown.
Representatives from the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston said they had received three patients – two adults and one minor. The minor was admitted to the hospital while the adults were being treated in the emergency room.
Clear Lake Regional Medical Centre in Webster received seven injured students, according to a spokeswoman for the facility. Two other injured students were taken to Mainland Medical Centre in Texas City, the spokeswoman said.
Witnesses said the shooting took place in an art class on campus between 7:30 and 7:45 am local time. One sophomore at the school said students were participating in what seemed to be a fire drill when they heard the shots.
“The next thing you know everyone looks and you just hear ‘Boom! Boom! Boom!’” student Dakota Shrader told CBS News. “I just ran as fast as I could to the nearest forest to hide and call my mom.”
Students were evacuated from the school and transported to a local gym to be reunited with their parents, according to the school district. Other schools in the district remained on a regular schedules.
Surrounding school districts were placed on "protect mode" as a precaution. Doors were locked and personnel were stationed at outer doors, and no students were allowed outside of building.
The Santa Fe Police, Galveston County Sheriff's Office, Harris County Sheriff’s Office, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives all responded to the scene.
Authorities identified 17-year-old Santa Fe High School student Dimitrios Pagourtzis as the shooter, according to the Associated Press. The suspect carried an AR-15-style rifle, a pistol, a shotgun and pipe bombs, according to the Houston Chronicle.
Authorities also discovered explosives on the school grounds and in surrounding neighbourhoods.
Officials believe an 18-year-old they detained may be an accomplice, but not a shooter, according to CNN.
President Donald Trump called the shooting an "absolutely horrific" incident. “This has been going on too long in our country," he said in remarks at a prison reform summit.
Mr Trump has suggested arming school teachers and abolishing "gun free zones" in order to protect students.
Ted Cruz, a US senator from Texas, tweeted that he was keeping the students and faculty at Santa Fe High School in his prayers.
The incident occurred just over three months after a school shooting in Parkland, Florida, where 17 students and staff members were killed. The shooting sparked renewed calls for gun control reform, and a debate over how best to protect students.
"To everyone at Santa Fe high school, I hope you're safe, I’m so sorry this is happening, and I’m so sorry that it continues to happen," Sarah Chadwick, a survivor of the Parkland shooting, tweeted.
She added: "No one should be in the situation that you're all currently in. Im not going to say thoughts and prayers but instead policy and action."
